Pottery Pond, Stresnall: Lodges could be built so anglers can stay the night at Yorkshire fishing pond
People could get to stay the night at a fishing lake in York under new plans.
Plans to install 10 fishing lodges and build a new shower block with toilets and office at Pottery Pond, in Strensall, have been lodged with York Council.
Plans stated they aimed to boost the viability of the business by allowing anglers to stay longer which would bring in higher fees.
The new fishing lodges would be put up around the lake which is at a former clay pit off Strensall’s Pottery Lane.
It lies within a site covering a total area of 2.42ha, including woodland in the green belt.
Trees and plants on the southern part of the site screens the lake during summer. The site also includes a 10-space parking area.
Two types of lodges, one smaller and another larger, would be installed around the lake.
Plans stated the lodges and new facilities aimed to encourage people to stay at the lake longer and raise income which could be invested in better fish stocks.
They added the improvements would help to boost wildlife habitats there, along with the local economy.
Plans also stated the social, economic and environmental benefits weighed in the application’s favour, given it would result in development on green belt land.
The application stated: “The applicant is proposing 10 lodges and amenity facilities to improve the viability of the business by encouraging longer stays and increased fee income from the hire of the lodges, which will enable anglers to stay overnight on the site.
“The increase in numbers of anglers using the site and staying in the lodges for a number of nights year-round will have benefits for the local economy through increased spending.
“Several authoritative studies quantify the economic contribution of fishing ponds, lakes and inland recreational fisheries to the rural economy in England.”